Jacob & Co, Bucherer BLUE and Sotheby’s are sending the first Triple Axis Tourbillon into space.
The two famed watch companies, celebrated for their innovative and dazzling designs, along with Sotheby’s, the world’s premier destination for art and luxury, have joined forces in the spirit of exploration to send a special timepiece into the unmapped vastness of space before going up for a charitable auction this summer.
On April 8, from the Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Axiom Space launched a four-person team to and from the International Space Station (ISS).
The flight named AX-1, returned off the Florida coast on Monday, April 25. A crew member on this historical mission was Eytan Stibbe, an impact investor and philanthropist, leading the Israeli designed Rakia mission to space. He had the distinction of carrying along the Jacob & Co. Astronomia Tourbillon Bucherer BLUE.
The Rakia mission, along with the Astronomia Tourbillon Bucherer BLUE, spent 17 days 1 hour and 37 minutes in space, as the space crew orbited the Earth 273 times at an altitude of 250 miles at nearly 17,500 mph, traveling over 7 million miles in total.
With its return from space, the Jacob & Co. Astronomia Bucherer BLUE is set to embark on a public exhibition tour in New York City, first stopping at the Bucherer 1888 TimeMachine from July 11 – 17.
From there, moving to exhibition at Sotheby’s New York galleries from July 21-25, before heading to the auction block in a single-lot dedicated live auction on July 26.
On offer with no reserve- and bidding starting at $1- proceeds will be donated to benefit charities, with further details to be announced at a later date.
While the Jacob & Co. Astronomia Bucherer BLUE traveled to space and back on a single mission, the timepiece’s impact, because of this special sale, will reverberate for generations.
Patrick Graf, CCO of Bucherer, commented: “Together we strive to create the extraordinary and celebrate drive and curiosity of our NextGen customers.
“Jacob & Co.’s exceptional timepieces, imaginative power, and can-do attitude makes possible what seemed impossible before. Powered by the internationally renowned Sotheby’s, this collaboration brings the Bucherer BLUE philosophy to a whole new level and we are incredibly excited that the Astronomia Bucherer BLUE went up to space, pushing boundaries beyond the expected.”
